A Different Type of Fighting
by thefaultinourfunnystory
Summary: Instead of fighting cancer, Hazel is now fighting in a very different sense. After going through some really rough times, Hazel finds herself somewhere she never imagined she would be and comes to rely on people she never would have met if circumstances had been different.
1. Chapter 1

I can't take this anymore. My coach is a monster. Coaches are supposed to push you to do your best and encourage and support you. Instead mine is the biggest bully I've ever had to deal with. Before I continue I should probably introduce myself. My name is Hazel. I'm 12, but I turn 13 in a little less than a month. I'm a competitive swimmer and a nerd. That's pretty much all anybody thinks of me. I'm about to break. The reasons why are going to follow.

If you want to go all the way back, I'll tell you a bit about me as a baby. When I was little I would cry a lot. It's one of the main things my parents hold against me. As a toddler I was very outgoing around people I knew, but around strangers I was very shy and sensitive. I had a few friends in preschool and just stuck with them.

Once I started Kindergarten things began to be interesting. I didn't have any friends at my first school. In the middle of kindergarten my family moved to a nicer part of the county where some of the best schools are. I started at my new school right after winter break. I was the new girl with no friends and I was also the stupid girl. My new school was much more advanced than my old one so I was behind my classmates in reading and math. I worked my little ass off to catch up to my classmates and no longer be that stupid girl.

In first grade I was one of the smartest kids in my class, but I didn't believe I was really smart. I still had the image of the stupid new girl stuck in my head. I met my best friend Kaitlyn in first grade too. She helped me come out of my shell and become more social and tougher.

In second grade I got advanced a year in math so I was in 3rd grade math instead of 2nd grade math. It made me feel smart for about a week until I realized a few kids were in 4th grade math. Back to being the stupid girl again. Kaitlyn was at least in my class so I had a good friend to hang out with.

Third grade was when things really began to change. Kaitlyn moved to another school so I had no friends at my school. I was always bored in class and I thought that meant I was stupid. I applied for this special program my school district offers that is supposed to be super accelerated. All of the kids call it the nerd school. I didn't think I would get in, but I applied anyway because I thought it would be easier to make friends if everyone was a new kid.

Third grade was also when I began competitive swimming. My group was too easy for me but the group above mine was too difficult so I stayed where I was. I enjoyed swimming year round, but I didn't really make any friends in my club.

At the end of third grade I found out that I was accepted to the nerd school. I was shocked because I didn't think that I'd actually get in. That summer was my first year as being a member of my summer swim team who actually scores points and people know.

Then fourth grade began at my new school. I was accelerated another year in math and actually began to think that I may be smart. About halfway through fourth grade the bullying began. This one group of boys would always criticize my work and tell me other things that made me feel like an idiot again.

In the swimming world, I was going through a rough time. I had moved up to the harder group, but all of the kids in my group were a lot faster than me. I was always falling behind during sets and was miserable during practices. It got to the point where I was about to quit.

Then summer came along and changed everything. I started doing surprisingly well during the summer season. I ended up getting second high point for 9-10 girls. That means that I got the team the second highest amount of points in my age group, 9-10 girls. More importantly though, it means I got a big trophy.

After that summer I decided to give year round swimming another shot. I was in the same group as the year before, but this time I loved it. I was one of the top swimmers in my group and was actually able to complete the sets. I felt like I was on top of the world. The main problem I had that year was this boy in my group. Everyday before practice we would hangout with our other friends. About a month or two into the season he took to chasing me around the pool deck and slapping me with his fins. It hurt and left these red marks on my back and shoulders but being the oblivious 10 year old that I was I thought it was completely normal and ok. I didn't realize the impact he had on me till one and a half years later.

At school, I got advanced yet another year in math. There were only 18 kids in my class, so my class was relatively small. The main kid who bullied me in 4th grade had moved out of the country, so I didn't get bullied. I did, however, struggle with some of the topics I was learning in math while some kids had a really easy time with the same topics. That brought back my insecurities about my performance in school and intelligence. Keep in mind that I still had straight A's.

That summer I did really well during summer swimming. I managed to tie for 11-12 girls second high point. I also went to anew swim club to try it out because I was going to switch clubs. I ended up really liking the first club I tried out, so that was the club I decided to switch to. I spent the end of that summer getting ready for middle school. Now it's time to explain the important shit that was the main force for me getting here.


	2. Chapter 2

Sixth grade was a shock to say the least. It had a very different atmosphere than the 50 kid program I had spent the last two years in. Not everyone was some kid genius taking extremely advanced classes where if you get a 95% it's a bad grade.

I actually felt smart for once. Another huge difference was the norm of behavior. My old school was like a little protective bubble where no one curses and everyone is a completely innocent, non-corrupted, goody two shoes. Middle school was filled with kids who cursed in almost every sentence, wore what ever they wanted and acted like normal kids.

As the school year progressed I finally began to loosen up a bit from the whole goody two shoes thing. I started cursing a bit and wearing clothes I felt more me in outside of school.

In swimming, the beginning of the year was great. I loved my new club, made a lot of new friends, and was getting a lot faster. My shoulders became more of a problem but they were still manageable. The first of my problems that year came when allergy season came. My asthma decided to make a comeback that year.

I struggled with my breathing for about a month before my parents finally brought me to the doctors to get an inhaler. In that month, my coach yelled at me all the time for "not working hard enough" even though I had to work five times as hard as the other kids to just keep going. After I got my inhaler, my breathing got a bit better but still was a pain in my ass.

My coach still didn't give a shit about the fact that I had a hard time breathing even though I had a doctor's validation that something was wrong. She kept yelling at me and making me feel like shit.

That summer my math teacher, who I really loved, died and my coach never asked me what was wrong even though I was crying the whole practice. In summer swimming, I didn't do my best since my speed went down considerably during the asthma time. I still managed to score points though and managed to get high point for 11-12 girls. I'd finally accomplished all my goals.

Seventh grade started and I was still the always happy rainbows, unicorns and butterflies girl who was obsessed with swimming. The problem was I wasn't enjoying swimming as much anymore. My shoulders got so bad that I had to go to physical therapy for them. My coach became an even bigger bitch to me and my grades were falling due to morning practices.

I ended up just doing afternoon practices and trying to tune out my coach.

While all this was going on, I made a new friend. Her name is Kaitlyn. We met at our joint friends birthday party. We became friends over tackling each other while fighting for a plastic ball.

Kaitlyn showed me that people could like me for just being me. I started to drop the whole "I have no care in the world" act and just be me. My coach kept getting worse and I began to fear her. I decided to take a break for swimming right after I turned thirteen till my bat mitzvah to take time to deicide if I want to continue or quit.

When the time finally came, I made the decision to quit swimming for good. It was a hard decision since swimming was my life. I also lost almost all of my swimming friends. I gave away all of my swimming related clothing and stored my trophies and plaques in the closet.

One day after being pestered by my parents to pick a new sport I got an idea. I've never been the same since that one thought festered in my brain and grew. It's what's taken me this far.


End file.
